Machine for making spring mattresses and the like



Aug. 16, I1938. vl. sAPPlNGToN MACHINE FOR MAKING SPRING MATTHESSES AND THE LIKE Filed May 21,4 19:57

2 Sheets-Sheet l Paul Sqn/U mmm r l I www/wd Aug.A 16, 1938. P. sAPPlNGToN v 2,126,979

MACHINE FOR MAKING SPRING MATTRESSES AND THE LIKE Filed May 2l, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 16, 1938 MACHINE. FOR MAKING SPRING M'I'- PRESSES ANDl THE LIKE Paul Sappington, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor of one-half to J. C. Rosenthal, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application May 21, 1937, VSerial No. 144,056

2 Claims. (Cl. 140-3) This invention relates to a simple and eicientV machine for use in joining the coiled springs of a mattress or similar structure, one of the objects being to provide a mechanism whereby elongated coiled springs can be fed to upstanding springs arranged in rows so as to become intertwined therewith and constitute resilient connections between them.

A further object is to provide a machine of this character which can be operated by one person and, when in action, will feed one or more coiled springs to the cushioning springs to be joined thereby.

A further object is to provide simple and efficient means for shifting the driving mechanism whereby the feed can be reversed at will so as to quickly reset it for successive operations.

A still further object is to provide a light machine of this type which will not readily get out of order and can be installed readily.

With the foregoing and other objects in View which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings Figure 1 is a front elevation of the machine.

Figure 2 is a plan view thereof.

Figure 3 is a section on line 3--3, Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a section on line 4--4, Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a section through a portion of the machine taken on line .5-5, Figure 3, the motor being indicated by broken lines.

Figure 6 is a section through a portion of the machine taken on line 6--6, Figure 4.

Figure 7 is a section on line I-'I, Figure 1.

Figure 8 is an enlarged plan view of one of the grippers and its supporting head.

Figure 9 is a section on line 9 9, Figure 8.

Figure 10 is a plan view showing, in diagram, the relative positions of some of the cushioning springs and connecting coils.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference I designates the legs of a table 2 o-n which are mounted parallel strips 3 each having a row of upwardly extending pins 4. Longitudinal side rails 5 connect the legs and the entire supporting structure of the top 2 can be reenforced by means of braces 6 located wherever found desirable.

The rails 5 constitute a track on which are 5 The carriage is provided with a Standard gf in which is secured one end portion of a tubular housing IU supported between its ends by a grooved roller Il carried by a transverse shaft I2 which is supported by the legs at one end of the machine. The tubular housing I is held against rotation and the outer end thereof, which is the end farthest removed from the standard 9, has a hollow head I3 iixedly mounted thereon and extending `upwardly therefrom. A removable cover plate I4 is secured in any suitable manner to this head and is provided with bearing sleeves I in each of which is journalled a short shaft I t.

A drive shaft I'I is journalled within the tubular housing Ill and projects from both ends thereof. By means of chain and sprocket mechanism indicated generally at I8 and located in the head I3, rotary motion is transmitted from shaft II to the short shaft I6 so that they will all rotate in the same direction simultaneously. The outer Aends of the short shaft I6 which are extended toward the carriage 3, are provided with grippers indicated in detail in Figures 8 and 9. Each of these grippers includes a stationary linger I9 which is lapped by a clamping plate 2li having a tapered gripping end- 2| slightly spaced from the finger I9 so as to provide a clearance 22 for the reception of the end convolution of a coiled spring to be actuated. It is to be understood that different types of gripping devices can be used and the particular construction of the one herein shown therefore is of no particular importance.

'I'hat end of shaft I'I adjacent to the standard 9 is provided with a friction wheel 23 normally engaged by a small friction wheel 24 on the shaft 25 of an electric motor 2B. This motor has base members 21 and 28 and from the member 28 extends a depending ear 29 pivotally supported on a pin 30 located under the carriage 8. This depending ear 29 is preferably made integral with a block 3| arranged beneath and i'lxedly secured to the base member 28 of the motor. To this same block is pivotally attached the lower end of an upwardly extended angular lever 32 carrying a friction wheel 33 at its upper end and extending laterally from this upper end of the lever 32 is an arm 34 in which is xedly mounted the lower end of a bearing pin 35 carrying an antifriction roller 36. This roller thrusts outwardly or forwardly against an actuating rail 31 supported by depending arms 38 pivotally mounted under the top 2 adjacent to the ends thereof. Extending from the upper or pivoted ends of the arms are levers 39 connected by rods 4B to brackets 4I fastened to the end portions of a treddle 42. This treddle is extended longitudinally of the machine adjacent to the bottom thereof and is pivotally supported at its ends as shown at 43. The brackets 4I are so located that when the forward portion of the treddle is depressed, these brackets will be moved upwardly, thereby transmitting thrust to the rods 44 to the levers 39 and causing arms 38 to swing the rail 31 inwardly or backwardly so as to correspondingly move the anti-friction roller wherever it may be located along said rail.

A lifting plate 44 is located below the base portion 21 of the motor and has a downturned bearing portion lifting upon the bottom of the carriage 8 and seated in a notch in said bottom as indicated by dotted lines at 46 in Figure 6. This lifting plate is provided with an upwardly extended finger 41. A connecting rod 48 is pivotally connected to the lever 32 and extends loosely through finger 41, there being a nut or other suitable stop device on this rod as indicated at 49 so as to prevent withdrawal of the rod from the finger when pulled in one direction.

A spring 53 is connected to the free end portion of the arm 34 and to the block 3l and thus serves to exert a constant pull upon arm 34 so as to hold friction wheel 33 normally spaced from the wheel 23 as shown in Figure 4. The spring also serves normally to pull through lever 32 and rod 48 upon finger 41 with the result that the plate 44 thus presses upwardly against the base portion 21 of the motor so that the friction wheel 24 is normally in engagement with the friction wheel 23.

With the parts arranged in their normal positions as described and as illustrated in Figure 4, the operator pulls on the head I3 so as to move the carriage S toward one side of the machine, the wheels 1 travelling along the rails 5 while the Wheel 3B travels along the rail 31. The cushioning springs S to be joined are place-d in upstanding positions on the pins 4 so as thus to occupy parallel rows on the strips 3 above top2. The long coiled springs C used for connecting the upper and lower convolutions of theupstanding springs are then placed with one end gripped tightly by the fingers I9 and 2l while the other vend of these springs is placed in engagement with the upper and lower convolutions of the nearest springs S in the parallel series. With the parts thus arranged the motor 2B is started and motion will be transmitted therefrom through the wheels 24 and 23 to shaft I1 which, in turn, will transmit motion through the chain and sprocket mechanism to the shaft I6 and the grippers carried thereby. Consequently the two coiled springs which are to be entwined with the upstanding cushioning springs will be rotated and as a result of their helical configuration, they will feed forwardly automatically, passing from one spring to another and not only becoming intertwined with the Springs of each series but also with the corresponding springs of the opposed series so that following the complete advance of the two coiled springs being fed into the machine, the springs of each row will be joined together and will also be joined to the springs of the other row, the connecting means being the coiled springs C which were fed thereto by the advancement of the head I3.

If at any time during the forward feeding of the springs, it should be found desirable to retract them for the purpose of directing the same into proper engagement with the upstandingv or cushioning springs, it becomes necessary merely for the operator to depress the treddle 42. This will cause an upthrust through rod 44 and lever 39 to arms 38 and rail 31 therefore will push against the anti-friction roller 36 and cause lever 32 to swing to the left in Figure 4. Finger 41 will be released for swinging movement because the stop 49 will move away from it and as the plate 44 is supporting a part of the weight of the motor, this weight will be sufficient to cause the motor to swing downwardly when finger 41 is released, thereby withdrawing wheel 24 from contact with wheel 23. During this operation wheel 33 which has been moving with lever 32,

' will come into contact with both of the wheels 23 and 24. Consequently the rotation of shaft I1 will be reversed and the grippers, together with the springs engaged thereby, will also be rotated in a reverse direction so that the springs will be unwound from the upstanding supporting springs on the pins 4 until the free ends of these connecting springs are brought to predetermined positions. By then releasing treddle 42 all of the parts will be returned to their normal positions and the connecting springs can again be fed forwardly.

Following the complete seating of the connecting springs the grippers can be detached therefrom and the operator, by pulling on the head I3, can move the carriage back to its initial position whereupon additional connecting springs can be attached to the grippers. Those springs on the pins which had been joined by the completed operation, can then be moved laterally to allow the arrangement of another row of springs on one set of the pins 4. Therefore when additional connecting springs are fed by the machine, these newly applied springs on pins 4 Will be joined to one row of springs of the partly completed mattress. This operation can be repeated until a mattress or cushioning structure of any desired width has been produced.

Obviously the operator, while standing in front of the machine, can reach readily to any part of the top and can also readily reach the head I3 for the purpose of moving it backwardly or forwardly as necessary. The operator is also located where he can easily guide the connecting springs as they are threaded forwardly into engagement with the parallel series of springs on the pins.

It is to be understood Vthat movement of the carriage in one direction can be limited by a stop such as indicated at 50 in Figure 1.

What is claimed is:

1. A machine for forming a mattress of rows of cushioning springs joined by connecting springs, said machine including a structure for supporting parallel rows of cushioning springs, a carriage mounted for back and forth movement on said structure, and means operating independently of the carriage for rotating a connecting spring, said means including a motor, gripping means, reversible friction gearing for transmitting motion from the motor to the gripping means, and means under the control of the 2. The combination with a supporting structure, a. top thereon, and upstanding rows of pins on the top, of a track carried by said structure, a carriage mounted for free movement therealong, a tubular housing Xedly joined to the carriage and extending beyond one end of the top, a head carried by the housing and supported thereby beyond one end of the top, a gripper mounted for rotation relative to the head, a motor suitably 10 mounted on the carriage, a driving Wheel thereon, a shaft in the housing, means driven thereby by actuating the gripper, a friction Wheel on the shaft, an intermediate Wheel, a rail mounted for swinging motion, means under the control of an operator for actuating the rail, and means movable along the rail for simultaneously tilting the motor and shifting the intermediate Wheel to drive the shaft in either direction. 

